UHF

title: UHF

year: 1989

cast: Weird Al Yankovic, Kevin McCarthy, Michael Richards, Victoria Jackson

rating: **

A feature film with Weird Al Yankovic is like a cartoon of THE FAR SIDE: don't stretch out what works best quickly. Al plays a loser who manages his uncle's rundown UHF station, giving ample opportunity for pop culture satire. Famous for three minute song parodies, Yank's conversion on screen lacks the punch of his day job; while his songs are funny, his acting is not. There's one music video: THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES to the tune of Dire Strait's MONEY FOR NOTHING, slightly humorous till the dated premise is realized. And the only good segment is a fictional station promo satirizing CONAN THE BARBARIAN. The rest flatlines continuously.